Improvement in lightening sea-going steam-vessels



UNITED STATES JOHN C. F. SALOMON AND GEORGE W. MORRIS, OF BALTIMORE,MARYLAND' PATENT OFFICE.

MPROVEMENT IN LIGHTENING SEA-GOING STEAM-VESSELS.

Specification forming part of Lett-ers Patent No. 19,047, dated January5, 1S58.

To all whom t may concern:

Be it known that We, JOHN CHARLES FRED- ERIOK SALOMON and GEORGE W.MORRIS, of the city of Baltimore, in the State of Maryland, haveinvented a new an d improved method of lightening sea-goin gsteam-vessels when in danger of foundering at sea by so constructingparts of the hull of the vessel within Water-tight bulk-heads and thesupports of the boilers engine in the same bulk-head that when the hourof danger arrives the detachable support and `bottom may be suddenlyremoved and the boiler and engine dropped into the sea, and thus thevessel relieved ot a considerable part of its Weight becomes morebuoyant, and may be sustained and floated above Water for a considerablelength of time or till relief from other vessels may be aforded; and Wedo hereby declare that the following is a full and exact descriptionthereof, reference being had to the accompanying drawings and lettersot' reference marked thereon, in which- Figure l. is a longitudinalelevation show ing the boiler and engine space amidships. Fig. 2 is ahalf-breadth plan of the above. Fig. 3 is a cross-section of theboiler-opening. Fig. 4 is a cross-section showing the shiftingframeswith the boiler detached ready to fall out. Fig. 5 is a plan of theshutters and camgearing for detaching the movable portions. Fig. G is across-section of the last, and also exhibits plans of the lower ends ofeach cam- Wheel or eccentric-shaft with their respectivedisengaging-chains and pin to the shutters G. Fig. 7 is a section of theupper portion of the standing and shifting timbers with the upperdetaching-gear. Fig. S is the inside elevation of the same. Fig. 9 is aplan of the lower knee-plates of the same. Fig. l0 is a plan of theupper knee-plates and gearing- Wheels. The nature of the inventionconsistsin devices for releasing steam-vessels from the burden of theirengines and boilers by means of unshipping or detaching certain portionsof the frames, dre., in sections, and which sustain or act as supportsof the boiler and engine, and thus freeing such vessels of the boilerand engine by dropping them into the sea in the manner to be described.

To enable others skilled in the art to make and use our invention WeWill proceed to describe the construction and mode of applying the same.

\Ve construct the vessel in the usual man ner and shape except thatportion occupied by the engine and boiler having fore and aft it aWater-tight bulk-head.

The Hoor-timber A (seen in Figs. 8, +L, and 6) forms the locking portionof the removable section of the engine and boiler-chamber, which chamberlies amidships and is closed in fore and aft by a Water-tight bulk-head.These parts are seen in place in Figs. G and 4. In the latter gure theboiler and the section D are in the act of falling out into the sea.

B represents the keelson running the Whole length of the hull, as inother vessels, but is made much deeper in the middle portion.

D represents the frame-Work, on which rest the boilers and engines oneach side of the vessel. (Seen in Fig. 4.)

O O, Fig. 3, represent the boilers resting in place on D.

E E represent upright frame, running from the iioor A to the deck,passing between the shifting timbers of D. Ends of timbers E are seen inthe plan, Fig. 5.

F is a covering of four-inch plank for the frame-work E (seen in sectionin Fig. (i) and constituting a bulk-head.

G is a strong shutter of four-inch oak plank, well battened at the endsand extending from the top of side keelson H to the lower termination ofthe planking F, and shown in place in Fig. G.

H is a fore-and-att side keelson on each side of the vessel out-side ofand against frame E and on a level with the main keelson, end sectionsof which may be seen in Figs. 3 and 6, and side view in Fig. 5.

I represents strong iron hinges, opening outward, Fig. G, and holdingfirmly the shutters G.

K represents a cogwheel, six feet in diameter, more or less, with itsshaft L and capstan N, as seen in Figs. 3 and 5, gearing into andoperating the four eccentrics or cams J, designed to aid in detaehingand dropping out the keelson end of boiler and engine supports.

R and R represent four-inch rods or shafts of iron, (see Figs. S and10,) four of the former and one of the latter, and the latterpassing u pthrough the deck and terminating in the capstan P, and by the slightrotation of the capstan P the outer portion of the boiler and enginesupport becomes detached from the eyes .in the U-formed knees (seen inFig. 7) and falls off. Hence it will be seen that by rotating capstan None part or extremity of the movable section D is detached from itssupporting-chains s s s s, while by `rotating Capstan P the oppositeextremity of thesame section Dis detached from the supportinghooks t t tt t, a viewof which hooks may be seen in Fig. 8, also in Fig. 1t, wherethe U- plate is shown detached from hooks t and is in the act of fallingoft'.

As the invention is chiefly conlined to the Construction of the engineand boiler chamber with the design of detaching the great weight of thisapparatusin time of danger, the description will be made t0 bear on themeans to be used for that purpose.

The frames D have the usual spaces between them, but are double thedepth of the regular Hoor-timbers, one-half their depth resting on thefloor-timber and the balance cut out to fit the ends of thefloor-timbers, as before described, and face with them on the outside,as seen in Figs. 3 and 4. The hood ends of the outside planking runsuiciently beyond the shifting timbers each way to calk upon thestanding timbers, and the plankstrake at the ends of the floor-timberswill also project, so as to calk upon the solid licortimbers, so, also,at the upper part, where the shifting timbers are jagged into the upperside, allowing calking upon the standing position. The main keelson, asbefore stated, runs the whole length, as in other vessels, butis mademuch deeper in the central portions. About three feet (more or less)from the central line and on each side of the detachable sections willbe constructed a strong upright frame E E, (seen in vertical section inFig. 6 and horizontal section in Fig. 5,) made of six-by-six oak timber,secured to the top of the floor-timbers A, and, passing between theshifting timbers D, will run up several feet above the deck-beams, wellsecured by iron rods, nuts, dto. This framing on the outside will beplanked on the outside with four-inch oak plank F (seen in Figs. 4 and6) from the upper termination of the framing down to about four feetabove the keelson height. Across the shifting timbers D, and well boltedto them, will be arranged a fore-and-aft side keelson H on each side ofthe vessel outside of and against upright frame E and on a level withthe main keelson. A strong four-inch oak plank shutter G, Well battenedat each end and in the center, extends the whole length of the openingupward from the top of the side keelson H to the lower termination ofplanking F, and the shutter is well secured to the top of the sidekeelsons Il at each hatten by a strong iron hinge I, constructed to openoutward.

A six-inch diameter cog-'wheel K, larger or smaller, according to thesize ofthe vessel, strongly built, is placed midway between the rightand left hand shutters G, and designed for each shifting` compartment,the top edge being several inches below the line of the height or top ofthe shutters. Said wheel K is supplied with a six-inch shaft L, the

lower end being rounded and resting in a,

metal step or cup embedded in the main keelson, while the upper partpasses through the platforms and the main deck, where it 1s secured to aratchet-wheel M with a pawl, (seen in Fig. 3,) and terminates in thecapstan N, to be operated in the usual manner of ships capstans.

On each of the four quarters of the cogwheel K (see Fig. 5) are seenfore and aft and on right and left side of the vessel four eccentric orcam wheels J J J J, about three feet diameter, on the lower ends ofwhose shafts the several chains s s s s are attached by hooks or pins o0 r o", and which chains sustain the boiler and engine supports tillready to be detached and allowed to fall off. The said cog-wheels J gearinto wheel K and are moved by it, as before explained. The shafts of J,dto., pass through the two platforms, (the lower one just above theshutters and the other about midway between that and the main deck,)from which these shafts of the eccentrics J will be suspended by collarsa; and pins 0 1^, Fig. 6, above each platform. The lower ends of theseshafts run six to eight inches below the eccentrics and are enlarged indiameter, forming stationary collars fr for the support of theeccentrics J. On one side ot' each will be a pin r, upon which a chain sis being attached to the upper part of shutter G (see Fig. 6) for thepurpose of keeping the shutters in their places till it is necessary todisengage them. The pressure of the bulk-head F on the shutters G willact as props from the deck above to keep the shifting timbers in theirplaces; but additional security is afforded above at the point where theshifting timbers are dogged into the upper side of the ship, andknee-plates u of stout iron well secured to bolts to every secondshifting timber at the heads, as is seen in Figs. 3, e, 7, 8, 9, and lO,and said plates run down sufficiently far to admit several bolts in thesides of the timbers. The upper part of said knee is bent at a rightangle from the frame at a proper distance and terminates with an eyeopen at front. (Well shown in Fig. 9 and in place in Fig. 7.) Said eyeis designed to receive a four-inch bolt R, and the opening in front isabout two inches, with one lip turned up to release, at the proper time,a pin in the lower extremity of said rod R. As the rods R are geared toeach other (see Fig. l0) by means of a series of cog-wheels,the lip onone side of the eyes will severally be on opposite points. Ironknee-plates S will also be secured by bolts to the lower part of thestandingtimbers, Fig.7, immediately above the lower one U,

the lower end of each being turned out at right angles and the samedistance from the upright plate or timber, and terminating in an oval orslotted eye for the reception of bolts R or R. Upon the upper surface ofsaid eye will be secured an iron ring, its upper surface forming aninclined plane, (represented by T,) the outline of which is seen in theview, Figs. 3 and 4. A rod or bolt R, Fig. 8, passes through capstan P,at the center shifting timber on deck at side c, down through both eyesof knee-plates U and S T, and terminates under the lower or open eye,With a pin on one side near the lower end, and binding under the side ofthe lower eye. The other standing timbers (above the shifting timberssupplied With knee-plates) will also be supplied with rods or bolts R,but will not reach up to the deck like the center one. All these boltsor rods R R act as shafts to the cog-Wheels a', (seen in Fig. 10,) thecentral one acting to turn all the rest at the proper time anddischarging the movable section-boilers, disc., into the sea. Thisdisengagement of the section by rotating the rods R and R is performedby the inclined plane of the ring-piece (seen at T, Fig. 4) which by theturning is thrown ont of its bearing, and the same effect takes placesimultaneously in all the shafts R R. The water-tight bulk-heads foreand aft of the said engine and boiler room will be made donble by stoutoak plank and the intervening space filled with india-rubber andpowdered cork stuff in approved manner and suitable slidedoors madetight by approved Watertight packing ready to be pnt in use whenrequired.

l-Iaving fully described the nature of our invention and the manner inwhich our s everal devices are used, what we claim, and desire to secureby Letters Patent, is#- So attaching the engine and support of theboiler to movable or detachable bottoms and sides of the vessel thatthey may be dropped out and thus relieve the vessel of its Weight, inthe manner herein set forth.

JOHN O. FR. SALOMON. GEO. XV. MORRIS` Witnesses:

JOHN S. HoLLINGsHEAD, WILLIAM PEAK.

